A BAKERY firm and several of its directors, two of whom are from Cheshire, were yesterday given big fines after an accident in which two workers were baked alive.

A BAKERY firm and several of its directors, two of whom are from Cheshire, were yesterday given big fines after an accident in which two workers were baked alive.

A court heard how the tragedy occurred because the firm wanted to save money and time on repairing a huge industrial oven.

Ian Erickson and David Mayes died after they were trapped inside the machinery at a temperature of 100 degrees Centigrade.

Fresha Bakeries was fined #250,000 and ordered to pay #175,000 costs after admitting two charges under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.

The firm's owners, the West Midlands-based Harvestime Ltd, was fined #100,000 and ordered to pay #75,000 costs.

John Bridson, from Hale, managing director of Fresha Bakeries, was fined #20,000 and ordered to pay #5,000 costs while production manager Brian Jones, who lives in Hartford, was fined #1,000.

Leicester Crown Court was told the accident happened in May, 1998 when the victims entered the oven just two hours after it had been used to bake bread.

They should have waited at least 12 hours before beginning their work there.

Prosecutor Anthony Barker QC, said the two men sent a number of increasingly panicky messages over their walkie-talkies, saying it was too hot for them to stay.

It was 17 minutes before the men were brought out by which time 43-year-old Mr Erickson was dead. Mr Mayes, 47, was rescued by the fire brigade but had suffered 80pc burns and later died.

Harvestime Ltd pleaded guilty to two counts under the Health and Safety Act while Bridson, 53, admitted two charges of failing to provide employees with a safe system of work.

Jones, 60, pleaded guilty to one count of the same charge while a third director, chief engineer, 45-year-old Dennis Masters was fined #1,000 after pleading guilty to one count of failing to take reasonable care for the safety of others at work.

A spokesman for the Health and Safety Executive said: 'No level of fine can possibly compensate. But we think that the fine reflects the seriousness of the offence.'